HOTTER IN HOLLYWOOD

THE HIH HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE OF 2011: PART 2

We get it.

Shopping can be a pain in the ass. But before you pull all your hair out because they ran out of the those Thor dolls at the store, suck on a candy cane, sit back, and let us help you select some items for those remaining names on your gift-giving list. Trust us. We've done this before... 

1. For The Shoe Lover In Your Life: A membership to ShoeDazzle.com -- For $39.95 a month, she (or he) gets a new pair of shoes, a bag, or a great accessory hand-picked to fit his/her style. Can’t afford an entire year’s membership? Start them off on the, um, right foot with just a month or three. If they don’t like it, they can cancel!

2. For Your Uncensored, Potty-Mouthed Roommate: Family Guy: Volume Nine on DVD -- "Wait a minute! Something's not right here...We're short one vagina in this room!" Relive the murder-mystery spoof at James Woods' mansion (and the above Quagmireism), delight in the controversial "Extra Large Medium" episode (the animated comedy's 150th), and bust a gut watching the other 12 episodes in this special-edition set featuring content that never made it on TV. Bonus Alert: footage from last year's Comic-Con panel (Seth MacFarlane, oh how we love thee).

3. For The Movie Buff Of The Group: A Landmark Theatres Gift Card -- They make a great gift for the holidays and are perfect for the movie lover in your life (come on, who doesn't want to see The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo?). Their cards are rechargeable and can be used online to purchase movie tickets through their ticketing website. They are also valid at any Landmark Theatres box office, concession stand or lounge (where available). Pick up your Gift Cards now at any Landmark Theatre or online in their web store!

4. For That Hygienic Hottie You've Been Eyeing in Accounting: A Dove Men+Care Gift Package -- For years the Dove brand has mainly catered to a female audience for their line of great skincare, hair care, and other beauty products. But now, it's reaching across the gender lines to another audience that is so often left out of the beauty products industry. A new line of Dove products are emerging for a growing market found in men’s grooming needs. Dove Men+Care is a new line of men’s products that include facial/body washes and bars, along with moisturizers and deodorants. These are formulated and fragranced specifically for men. Our fave: The Clean Comfort scent and the Active Clean Dual Sided Shower Tool (it's a scrub and mesh cloth in one!).

5. For The Softie Who Can't Get Enough of the 80s: The 25^th Anniversary Edition of The Princess Bride -- Love, revenge, adventure, humor and ROUSes? As you wish! 

6. For The Make-My-Own-Lunch Coworker: the Picnic Tiffin Box -- Does your office mate bring his/her own lunch to work in an attempt to be healthy and save a few bucks? Support them by buying this little container that's perfect for keeping food warm or cold (for up to 3 hours!). With a comfortable handle for carrying and fun colors, maybe your buddy will return the favor and start making lunches for you too. 

Come and get some yum-yum.

7. For Those Who Love A Good Love Story: Beginners and One Day on Blu-ray -- If you're like us, you can't resist the charms of Ewan McGregor and Jim Sturgess. So why not take these absolutely adorable thespians home with you and enjoy some indie romance and a little comedy? Beginners, one of our favorite films of the year, also stars the fantastic Melanie Laurent and Christopher Plummer, while One Day also stars one of our favorite actresses, Anne Hathaway (for those of you who've read the novel, you know what kind of a treat you're in for).

8. For That Frequent Flyer F**k Buddy You Have on Speed Dial: The ZÜCA Pro -- Built to fit in overhead bins and with a TSA-approved removable toiletry bag, this wheeled bag (complete with a built-in seat for those long waits) is a traveler's dream come true. Pick from 8 different colors.

GIVEAWAY ALERT! For a chance to win one of the above gift ideas, tweet us @HotterInHwood, "Like" us on Facebook, and share with us the worst Christmas gift you've ever received. Two lucky winners will be selected and treated to a holiday surprise!

THE HIH HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE OF 2011

Welcome back from Thanksgiving. We hope you've had a pleasant food coma and a chaos-free Black Friday. For those who didn't brave the midnight openings we have a few our favorite things we'd like to share with you. Don't worry, they won't drain your bank account. And some of them won't even require searching for a parking space at the mall.

Break out those lists. Ready. Set. Shop...

1. For The Electropop Junkie In Your Life: Resident by TimPermanent -- The indie artist who made a viral splash earlier this year with his acoustic cover of Robyn's "Dancing On My Own" has finally released his highly anticipated follow-up EP.

Our must-listens: "Dance Floor Lost" and the magnificently melancholy "In The Dark."

2. For Your Foodie Friend: The 2012 Zagat's Guide for Los Angeles/Southern California Restaurants -- You know that new place that just opened up on your block, the one you drive by every day and tell yourself you need to check out (and don't)? It's sure to be in this new edition of the popular eatery guide. Your wallets and appetites will thank you.

3. For The Musical Lover Who Can't Resist A Collector's Edition: The West Side Story 50th Anniversary Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack -- Whether your a Jet or a Shark (or a Tony or a Maria), you'll want to take home this iconic slice of movie-musical history, enjoy the hell out of the special features, and check out the special collector's book that comes with Target-only copies. Tonight, tonight...

4. For The Sci-Fi Geek With A Hard-On For Spielberg & J.J. Abrams: Super 8 on Blu-ray/DVD -- The best summer movie of 2011 (in our humble opinion) is finally available to enjoy in glorious HD. Featuring the best kid cast in recent memory, this Close-Encounters-meets-Stand-By-Me adventure is a pleasant throwback to the early days of Spielberg that also pays homage to several other genre classics. And the special features on this thing are a doozy. Three words: Tom Cruise cameo.

5. For Your Office Cubicle Buddy: 8-Bit Tie -- Ties are a pretty safe gift idea, especially when the person you’re buying for has a fancy office job where they wear things like ties on a day-to-day basis. A way to let your geek freak flag fly at work is through an awesome tie…in this case, by wearing an 8-bit tie! PLUS to make it even better, it’s a clip-on tie, so no pesky tie tying! Get it here.

6. For Caffeine Fiends: Laboratory Beaker Mug -- If you're awesome like us, you know that coffee's heavenly taste comes from a perfect balance of aliphatic, chlorogenic, phenolic, and alicyclic carboxylic acids...and sweet roasted carbohydrates in the form of polysaccharides and sucrose. So many different chemicals! The combinations of which depend mostly on the roast, skill of the roaster, and the kind of brewing pot you use. The bottom line: your coffee mug is full of chemistry, so why are you sipping your bitter black brew from a simple and boring ceramic mug? Get one here.

7. For That Cute Tech Geek You're Crushing On: iCADE, the iPad Arcade Cabinet -- How cool would it be to slide your iPad into a desktop-sized arcade cabinet and rock it old-school with some Battlezone or Tempest? Enter the iCADE iPad Arcade Cabinet! To use the iCade, gently slide the iPad into the cradle. The iCADE uses Bluetooth to connect to the iPad so there's nothing else you need to do. You're ready to "insert coin" and game on! To bring the iCADE to life, ThinkGeek has partnered with ION. *Atari also signed up to bring a huge suite of classic arcade titles including Asteroids to market with iCADE support built right in.

8. For Those Cocktail Party Whores (you know who you are): The Absolut Holiday Gift Pack (below) -- In an Absolut World every night is a masquerade and every mask conceals nothing but instead shows our true inner selves. The new gift set from Absolut helps you unmask the ordinary and reveal the glamour and magic inside every night. *For those 21 and over.

And while we're at it, how about a simple little recipe (from us to you)? We call it the Masquerade Vodka Libre. You'll need:

1 part ABSOLUT Vodka
Soda (Coca-Cola)
Lime

Shake the vodka with ice until very cold. Strain into a well-chilled cocktail glass and top up with cola. Garnish with a wedge of lime.

Easy, right? Enjoy...responsibly.

And Happy Holidays!

Love, HIH

THE HIH HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE OF 2010

It's the most wonderful time of the year...to drive yourself crazy with shopping lists, out-of-town in-laws, belt-busting diets, and the hunt for the best parking space at the mall.

And HIH is here to point you in the right direction (with the shopping part at least). Our team of HIHers have put their heads together to come up with a list of gift ideas that will please your loved ones, your coworkers - even those relatives you see only once a year. From the economical to the extravagant, check out what Hollywood's giving out this year...

Pencils ready?

For The New Parents Who Need All the Help They Can Get - The Blankyclip is a godsend, a plush clip that helps keep your baby's favorite blanky in place wherever you go. Perfect for the stroller, you won't have to worry about it falling off or blowing away. And it doubles as a safe toy your child can play with.

For The Girlfriend Who Loves Fashion...and Technology - She loves to shop for new Gucci shoes. From an app. On her iPhone. You adore for so many reasons, including the fact that she can gossip with you on the latest in Web 2.0 developments. But when it comes to her weekly bouts of power shopping, you can't always keep up. Worst of all, and perhaps a bit counter-intuitively, her love of both technology and fashion often make her the most difficult person to buy gifts for (She already has an iPad AND a Louis Vuitton sleeve to store it in). Score her a pair of the recently announced Jerome C. Rosseau/Disney Couture designed, 5-inch platform sandals. For $795, these technologically sexy, pewter colored heels were originally created using TRON: Legacy heroine, Quorra, as the designer's inspiration. Your gf will faint when she sees them and will want to wear them on the film's opening night (Dec. 17, in case you're wondering).

For Your Gay BFF Who Needs an Excuse to Stay In on a Saturday Night - The Golden Girls 25th Anniversary Complete Boxed Set (above). All 7 seasons of the Emmy-winning sitcom come in a replica of Sophia's iconic wicker purse. He won't stop shrieking. And neither will you. 

For the Astrology Junkie in Your Life - A reading from Wonder Bright (www.starsofwonder.com). An HIH alum, Wonder is an amazing reader and goes in depth to tell you where the stars have it out for you and whether or not you were born "under an auspicious star" (thanks Shakespeare). She does astrology readings in person or over the phone (for out-of-towners)  All she needs is your birthday, birthplace, time of birth and a willingness to have your mind blown.

For Your Bookworm Buddy Who Loves Some Good British Fiction - One Day by David Nicholls. If you or someone you know has a hard-on for Nick Hornby-like narratives, then grab a copy of this funny and touching fictitious account of a romance chronicled each year - from 1988 to 2007 - on one particular date: July 15.

Start reading it after Christmas dinner, and by New Year's Eve you'll be recommending it to everyone you come into contact with. And then you'll be proud to have read it before the movie adaptation starring Natalie Portman or Anne Hathaway eventually hits theaters.

For The Coworker Who Just Got a New MacBook Pro - Make sure your cubicle buddy keeps his new tech toy safe with this cool laptop sleeve that comes in funny designs (like an interoffice envelope, pictured). There's also one that looks like a marble Composition notebook.

A variety of colors styles are also available at Macy's. And they start at $20. Reasonable, no?

For Anyone with a Sweet Tooth - And really, during the holiday season who DOESN'T have one? Get a box of red velvet, chocolate or the signature Skinny (read: fat free) cupcakes from 17th Street Cafe in Santa Monica. They're so sinfully good they're worth the extra ten minutes on the treadmill:

    

Stay tuned for more goodies. And Happy Shopping.

BLACK FRIDAY TIPS FROM HIH

  

Godspeed...